martes, junio 19, 2012

Monsanto loses court case in Brazil

Monsanto Loses Billions in Brazil

By Swagato ChakravortyTuesday, June 19th, 2012

A
recent ruling by the Brazilian Supreme Court of Justice may cause
biotechnology leader Monsanto to lose billions in revenue from its
genetically modified Roundup Ready soya beans. This decision is just the
latest chapter in a drama that has seen millions of Brazilian farmers
take Monsanto to court over payments they made to the company over the
past ten years.

Brazil is the second-largest producer of GM crops after the United
States.Last year, Brazil farmed a total of 30.3 million hectares of GM
crops (mostly soya, but also cotton and corn). Brazil legalized farming
of GM crops back in 2005. Crops grown from Roundup Ready seeds are
resistant to the pesticide glyphosate, which is marketed as Roundup.
Thus, farmers using these seeds can freely spray their fields with
Roundup without worrying about their crops.

However, since 2005, Monsanto has charged Brazilian farmers 2% of all
Roundup Ready sales, which today accounts for almost 85% of the
nation’s total soya bean crop. Further, Monsanto also tests all
Brazilian soya beans that are marketed as “non-GM.” If any of these are
found to be Roundup Ready varieties, the company penalizes the farmers
responsible nearly 3% of their sales.

The trouble began in 2009 when a group of farmers from Rio Grande do
Sul challenged Monsanto, claiming that it was impossible to keep Roundup
Ready beans separate from conventional varieties, and that the
“Monsanto tax” was illegal and unjust. João Batista da Silveira, one of
the leaders of this challenge, says that “The issue is that segregating
GM and conventional soya is difficult, since the GM soya is highly
contaminating.” Monsanto countered with accusations of lost revenue due
to Brazil continuing to smuggle in Roundup Ready seeds, but the
Brazilian Association of Seeds and Seedlings asserts that 70% of soya
bean farmers buy their seeds legally.

Giovanni Conti, a judge in Rio Grande do Sul, decided in April that
Monsanto’s levy was indeed illegal, and noted that the patents covering
Roundup Ready seeds in Brazil had already expired. Monsanto was not only
ordered to stop collecting royalties, but also to return all royalties
collected since 2004. Alternately, they could pay back a minimum of US
$2 billion.

Following an appeal by Monsanto, Conti’s sentence was suspended while
the Justice Tribune of Rio Grande do Sul considers the case. However in
2011, Monsanto approached the Brazilian Supreme Court of Justice in an
effort to restrict any decisions made by the Tribune to Rio Grande do
Sul; evidently, Monsanto feared massive losses should that sentence be
applied nationwide. On 12 June, the Supreme Court dismissed Monsanto’s
appeal.

Despite the ill-will against Monsanto, some researchers worry about
the fallout from such a large penalty. The Brazilian Agricultural
Research Consortium (Embrapa) has a research agreement with Monsanto.
Elibio Rech, an Embrapa researcher, said, “Although Embrapa has other
financial sources, if the collection of royalties is interrupted then $5
million to $10 million dollars will be cut from our budget, which would
stop some research projects.” Carlos Fávaro, president of the Mato
Grosso association of soya bean and corn producers, also agreed that
there could be negative effects as far as agricultural research is
concerned. However, he also spoke out against the existing system,
stating that “The way of collecting royalties is unfair, [Monsanto]
charges us in double: when we buy the seeds and then when we sell the
soy.”